Article by Dr. Les Hollon, Pastor, St. Matthews Baptist Church
Editor’s Note: Traditionally we have not published articles on Sundays. Until now. This article is the first of what will be many “Sermon Briefs,” which will be published each Sunday and on select other days as appropriate. We owe a debt of gratitude to Les Hollon, Pastor of St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, KY, for making this happen.
Make The Days Count is about reminding ourselves what is important in our lives, and how we can be more positive and productive each day. You can see the various topics we focus on in the right margin … with the intent to be present, make each day count, be productive, and live well … For us, this includes God.
How do we manage life? How can our faith help us live with mounting stress? How do we find rest in a busy world?
Strange, isn’t it? Our technology was marketed with the idea of giving us more time to enjoy by our not having to do the “work” once required before the technological developments. Yet Americans are working more and talk of being “stressed out” because we don’t have enough personal time away from disstressful responsibilities.
We live in the wealthiest country in the most affluent era of world history, yet we feel the affect of a financially “stressed out” society. We live in an age of remarkable medical resources for living longer and healthier. Though we have added more years to our life, we have not added more life to our years. What is going on? The gap is caused by an age-old problem.
The gap of distress is caused by the disconnect of our living in a sin sick world and our faith in God in light of the world’s challenges. Rather than placing our trust in God to form our lives, all too often we depend upon society & ourselves to get done what we can’t do alone. And our inability stresses us out.
The three key promises in faith are:
▪ Know that God understands our needs (see I Peter 5:7).
▪ Trust God because God is trustworthy. And we become trustworthy as we allow God to shape us (see Matthew 6:33; 11:28-30).
▪ Trust God with our whole life and apply that faith to each life area, one day at a time (see Philippians 4:6-8).
When we look to our faith and trust in God first - rather than ourselves or society - our hopes & expectations are shaped by God’s promises and the stress which then comes with life is placed in His power and we are given the strength to fulfill His desires in our lives.
Healthy stress is a necessary part of healthy living. This stress is the natural interplay of living out good priorities in healthy ways. This is Shalom, the Hebrew word for peace, which Jesus used.
Pastor Les Hollon
“I have to learn that the aim in life is God’s, not mine. God is using me from His great personal standpoint, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him, and never say - Lord, this gives me such heart-ache - He simply asks me to have implicit faith in Himself and in His goodness.”
-Oswald Chambers, “My Utmost For His Highest”
This article was written by Les Hollon, Pastor of St. Matthews Baptist Church. For more information about finding peace through faith, St. Matthews Baptist Church, or to contact Dr. Hollon, click over to St. Matthews Baptist Church.
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Article by Make The Days Count Contributor Judy Mosley
A new year is racing toward us. Already, the hopes and dreams of New Years are rising within us. Often we label these as resolutions, decisions that this year, we will accomplish the things we have wanted to do for so long. Lose weight. Quit smoking. Make the bed every day. This is the year that our lives will be better.
But there is something all of us must do before we step into a new future. We must let go of the past.
The joys, pains, heartaches, and the triumphs must all be relinquished before we can expect to enter the future with open hands and open hearts.
Many people refuse to let go of the past because they believe the good days are over. Whatever joy they had, for a certain period in their lives, is impossible to have now. And they even refuse any good that might come to them because it’s different from what they experienced in the past.
Others cannot let go because their past was so excruciating. Instead of moving through the pain and allowing healing to come into their hearts, they allow the pain they feel to make all the decisions about their life. They can’t imagine that life could be different and so they cling to the walls that they have built for themselves, even if those walls are no longer necessary.
Letting go of the past is never easy. It’s more like a journey to be taken rather than a flat-out yes or no decision. Even so, there are some beginning steps that we can take that will help to ensure our success on this journey: Read More »
Article and Photograph by Make The Days Count Contributor Ann Wilkinson
We often joke that our kids are born to us without an instruction manual. Although we have nine months before they are born to be alternatively elated and terrified, we usually know when they are born that we will love them forever and no matter what the future brings.
When your child does something that doesn’t meet your expectations, do you dwell on it for a long time? Do you constantly go over and over this piece of bad behavior? Most of us may be disappointed for a brief period, but as time goes on, we naturally start to forget their transgression (sometimes only to be surprised once more when it’s repeated). But we love our children unconditionally, and we never lose sight of that with them. We see them on their journey towards adulthood, and we are their guardian for that time, never letting site of that goal and loving them no matter what. Read More »
Article by Make The Days Count Contributor Ann Wilkinson
How much time do you spend thinking about the ways your job annoys you? How much time do you spend listening to friends and family as they grouse in great detail about how much they dislike their work? We complain and then we envy others who seemingly do “what they love” for their livelihood and wish we could be more like them.
What would it be like to design the kind of job we truly want? We don’t always have that luxury. So, it’s up to us to take the framework we have and make it work for us to love what we do on a day-to-day basis. Read More »
Article and Photograph by Make The Days Count Contributor Ann Wilkinson
What do you conjure up in your mind when you think of the word “creativity”? Do you think of an artist wielding a paintbrush or a charcoal pencil? Do you think of an actor on stage interpreting her lines? Do you think of a master musician creating a complex piece of music? Do you ever picture yourself in any of these scenes of creativity?
You are a creative person by nature. We all are. Perhaps you have let this aspect of yourself go with your busy day-to-day life of work, bills, commuting, children and their priorities. But have you considered that you can continue to explore your creative side, even in the midst of the day-to-day? And, if you can add little bits of creativity to your daily routine, you may find that you become increasingly creative and gradually more satisfied with your life. Read More »
